Sci/tech tidbits in and around New Hampshire
Another thing we’ve changed: Nitrogen deposition in New England rain and snow
Over the past century, northern New England ecosystems have undergone numerous changes in land cover, from forest to farmland and back to forests. As lands once used for agriculture revert to woodlands, they impact the process through which nitrogen—a nutrient that...
EV-filled Beijing shows that engines are what makes cities so *&^%! loud
Any big city exhibits aspects of William Gibson’s famous line that the future is already here, it’s just not evenly distributed – but few take it as far as Beijing. (Yes, folks, this is an example of that fine journalistic tradition: the “What I did on my summer...
NH patents through Sept. 15
(Links to each patent can be found here, using the patent number or inventor’s name.) By Targeted News Service WASHINGTON – The following federal patents were assigned in New Hampshire through Sept. 15 *** Connecting Plasma Arc Torches and Related Systems and Methods...
Almost nobody has actually kept food out of landfills, despite bans
Bans on sending food waste into landfills haven't worked in any state except Massachusetts, according to a new story, and even there the result wasn't overwhelming. The Washington Post has a story. The study identified several factors that could explain Massachusetts’...
Wind-power sale slated off NH waters
The Department of the Interior Monday announced it will hold an offshore wind energy lease sale on Oct. 29, for eight areas on the Outer Continental Shelf off Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine. If fully developed, these areas have a potential capacity of...
NH firm makes composting machinery
Much of social media is nasty, as we all know, but there are places where it is charming. One of those is the Reddit subgroup about composting. Yes, composting. Every day people from around the world post pictures on the group showing their pile of rotting food in the...
No N.H. connection to this year’s Ig Nobel prizes (I think)
I don't think any of the winners of 2024 Ig Nobel awards had a New Hampshire connection, although I'm jet-lagged from vacation so may have missed a Dartmouth fellow or something like that. The ceremony, as I noted, returned to MIT from Harvard this year. “Throughout...
Spotter saves NH lake from invasion by zebra mussels
New Hampshire's NH Lakes program puts people (volunteers? maybe they get a small stipend) on boat ramps at various lakes to try and keep people from accidentally hauling invasive species from one waterbody to the next. InDepthNH, an independent online news...
Deep insight into the scientific method thanks to, um, lumpfish
Today’s insight into the scientific method is brought to you via a nondescript ocean dweller with the unlyrical name of lumpfish. The lumpfish, as I learned from a UNH press release, was the subject of recent research by Dr. Elizabeth Fairchild, a professor in the...
Town flags, OK, but what about town seals?
The news that the town of Boscawen has chosen a new town flag - you can read it here - reminded me of a couple things. One is that city and town official flags have no legal backing, as I reported when Boscawen was debating the issue. They're just fun symbols. Unless...
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